Hainan. Sovereignty over the Paracels remains an issue, but between
China and Vietnam only: it does not impinge on China–ASEAN rel-
ations in the way the Spratlys do.
The Spratly Islands present an altogether different and far more
complex situation. The group lies 1000 kilometers from Hainan
(though closer to the Paracels), but reach to within a 100 kilometres
of Palawan Island in the Philippines. Geographically they form part of
Southeast Asia. All the islands are small and barren, and the many
reefs are submerged at high tide. Their significance lies in their natural
resources (oil and fishing), and their strategic location. As China’s
economy grew in the 1990s, and it became a net importer of energy,
exploitation of the oil reserves believed to exist under the South
China Sea became increasingly attractive. Control of the Spratlys
would also give China strategic control over major shipping lanes,
though Beijing has stated it would never interfere with these. It would
also project Chinese power very much closer to Southeast Asia.
Both China and Vietnam claim the entire group on grounds of
‘historic use’, primarily by fishermen over the centuries. The PRC laid
formal claim to the Spratly islands in 1951, but did not move to occupy
any. Then only the largest island in the group was occupied, by a
Nationalist Chinese garrison. Philippines interest in the islands also
dates back to the 1950s. In 1970–71 Filipino troops occupied five
islands and even tried unsuccessfully to dislodge the Taiwanese garri-
son. Manila did not lay formal claim to any part of the group until
1978, however, after Hanoi, in 1975, occupied several islands in
response to Chinese seizure of the Paracels. In 1979 Malaysia claimed
a number of southern Spratly islands as part of its continental shelf,
and later occupied three of these. Finally, in 1988, Brunei claimed one
island lying within its Exclusive Economic Zone. Throughout this
period, Vietnam was allied to the Soviet Union and so was an enemy
of Beijing, while the ASEAN states were treated as allies. This led
China vigorously to denounce Vietnamese occupation, but to offer
only mild protests in response to the ASEAN claims.
A Short History of China and Southeast Asia